Skaters For Life
by Hikari Takaishi
Summary: 'Bout time I get a fic up. It's my 75th story (yay ^-^;), longest fic, and it's for Betsy's Love Triangle contest. It takes awhile to point out the couple, but there is a triangle between romances. Eh, there's my own contest info at the end. And...I know


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Skaters For Life

In an ice arena, a beautiful and young lady made her way on the ice. Her skates slid across professionally and her arms were outstretched to prepare for a leap. Increasing in speed, the girl then lifted her left leg to allow a quick spin and before the spin was over she jumped onto her other foot, continuing in the spin. As she pulled her arms in, the spins quickened and just as the music stopped, she slammed her toe into the ice with her arms up and a triumphant smile on her face. 

"That… was… great!" a girl smiled with her and skated out on her skates. "Hikari, you are becoming quite the impresser."

Hikari blushed and shook her head, "No, I'd never be as good as you, Mimi."

"Tch! You've got me beaten and buried." The older girl giggled and started to rotate her body in circles. "Soon I'll be taking pointers from you."

Hikari giggled with her and they started to skate freely.

At the same time, four guys gathered at the skateboard park with their newly bought helmets and boards. Two blondes and two brunettes sat down on the steps and talked about needless things. Two of the boys were younger than the other two and two of them were related. Who were they? Yagami Taichi, Ishida Yamato, Takaishi Takeru, and Motomiya Daisuke of course. Taichi and Yamato planned to teach the younger two how to skate. Frankly, they weren't too thrilled to be taking lessons from the two main crashers of the park. 

"The simplest thing is to stand on the board," Yamato said and demonstrated.

"Ooh," Daisuke rolled his eyes sarcastically. 

"Hey, do you want to learn or what?" Yamato snapped.

"Come on! Stop with the easy stuff, teach us some 540's or Ollie's or other stuff like that." The goggle-bearing boy pleaded.

Yamato glared and warned, "You'll be learning how to break your arm if you don't shut up."

Takeru and Taichi chuckled at the two bickering friends. "Start with the basics," Taichi said and stood up, "the better you are with the basics, the better the tricks will be."

"Why didn't you say so?" Daisuke placed himself on his dark blue skateboard with a fire pattern on the bottom.

Yamato shook his head and pulled his little brother up. "Go ahead, TK."

Takeru dropped his skateboard with a basketball on it on the ground and looked at it hesitantly. 

"Come on, Takeru." Taichi urged, "It's not gonna jump up and bite you."

"Yeah, besides, you have your helmet and pad stuffs. There's no way you can hurt yourself."

"Go, TA. Go, TA." Daisuke said sharply, attempting to get on his nerves.

"Shut up," Takeru raised his voice. Apparently, the attempt worked. The blond stepped onto the board and waited for something to happen. Nothing did. And so he put his other foot on and waited once more. Nothing again. 

"See? Not so bad." Yamato shrugged and pushed his foot against the ground. His skateboard inched along the sidewalk slowly. Daisuke and Taichi did the same, as did Takeru. Sure enough, the youths caught on and began to race each other with nothing more than skating. 

"You're so slow, TJ." Daisuke glided across the path and turned onto the next one.

"Whatever," was his remark as he followed, catching speed quickly. 

They followed each other around the park, through the tunnels, through the jumps, under the bars. Every so often, they would attempt a trick or two with failure as an outcome. As they came rolling back to Taichi and Yamato, Daisuke fell behind. And being the competitive he was, Daisuke wouldn't let Takeru win their little race. To bring a long fall to a short story, Daisuke's board bumped into the blonde's and they both took a spill on the ground. 

Taichi winced just as the loud thump filled his ears. "Gah, that's gotta hurt."

"They were doing so well too," Yamato twitched. 

"You should've stopped, Daisuke!" Takeru groaned.

"They should've taught us that!" he moaned right after.

"Hikari! Spin! Don't twirl. There's differences you know!" Mimi commanded and Hikari obeyed. It was half past eight and they were still practicing for the contest being held in three weeks. Mimi didn't let Hikari rest her feet for one minute.

"We gotta practice, Kari. No time for slacking!" she would say.

After the music stopped and Hikari did her last little twirl, she fell onto the cold ice. "Mimi," she breathed roughly, "please, let's take a break."

Mimi joined her by sitting on the ice and she held up her thumb, "Good work today."

"Thanks."

"Did you know that Daisuke and Takeru are taking boarding lessons from your brother and Yamato?" Mimi giggled.

"Oh my gosh! Really!" Hikari hid a laugh.

Mimi took a drink from her water bottle and added, "Oh! You know what? Taichi is going to try to get them prepared for the show in less than a month!"

Hikari dropped her drink container onto the ice and started to laugh uncontrollably. "Oh! He wishes!"

"Yeah," Mimi wiped a tear from laughing so much. "I wonder how he's going to pull that one off."

"Damn it, Daisuke! You keep stepping on the side instead of leaning." Taichi yelled, watching the two skate up and down the concrete hill. "Takeru! You're leaning too much. You'll fall off before you know it!"

"Don't drag the back of the board!" Yamato screamed at the two, practically pulling out his gel-infested hair. "Don't--don't--Damn it, Takeru! Don't even _try_ to do an Ollie!"

"I didn't mean to!" Takeru yelled back as he ran into the bar. He automatically fell forward and landed on his back. "Geh!"

"Holy mother of everything clumsy…" Yamato slapped his forehead. Daisuke tripped over Takeru and fell to the ground. Taichi fell over just because of the lack of talent. 

"Let's go," Hikari said, slipping her bag over her shoulders and walking towards the wide doors. Mimi followed with her own bag in hand. They escaped from the building and walked onto the parking lot with bare feet. It felt good on the cooling asphalt. Pink, purple, and red decorated the clouds above because of the sunset. And in the far east, the dark blue-velvety sky was seen. It was the typical day in August, so warm, so peaceful. 

Just then, a familiar blue mini-van drove into sight and rolled beside them. The tinted window rolled down enough for them to spot Taichi's eyes and then his whole face.

"Hello ladies," all four of the guys said simultaneously.

"Cute, no really." Mimi snickered sarcastically and pulled open the door. They climbed in and made their way to the back where they collapsed onto the seats.

"Ugh, I am never going to twirl so much in my life." Hikari groaned as the van started to move.

"Just wait until tomorrow," Mimi teased.

"Whoopee," the younger girl rolled her eyes. "So how'd you guys do?"

"We kicked butt!" Daisuke boasted.

"Yeah!" Takeru joined in.

"First we did races and then any amount of tricks."

"Yeah, all of them were perfect too."

"If you want to call falling on your face a trick…" Yamato said behind the wheel. The girls started to laugh.

"It's hard," Daisuke sank into his seat and frowned.

Takeru sighed and lifted his helmet with several scratches on it, "And painful."

"You guys should try ice skating. Now _that's _hard to do," said Hikari.

"Nah, the day I join in a girl sport is the day that my mom decides to quit her job." Takeru replied, staring out the window. Everyone knew how much of a workaholic his mother was. She rarely had any time to watch his sporting games anymore.

"We have to pick Koushiro up." Taichi reminded after a minute or two of silence.

"What for?" questioned Hikari.

"His parents are going on a getaway vacation for the two of them," Taichi started, "he's going to stay at our place for a week."

"Oh?"

"Yeah, it was all Koushiro's idea," Yamato answered.

"How sweet of him." Mimi smiled brightly.

Daisuke looked at the already-full van. "Dude, where's he going to sit?"

Mimi and Hikari pushed their bags off the seat and patted the empty spot between them. Daisuke, Takeru, and Taichi stared at the spot and their blood boiled with jealousy.

"You know…" Daisuke started.

Hikari smiled simply and said, "No thanks, Daisuke. Koushiro can sit by us."

The goggle-wearing boy would have fallen out of his seat if it weren't for his seatbelt. A song started to play on the radio and Yamato screeched the vehicle to a stop. Everyone lurched forward.

"That's my--" the blond stared at the radio, not realizing he was holding up a bit of traffic. 

"And that was the latest from that Ishida group that all the girls have been talking about," the radio announcer said as if reading Yamato's mind.

"Holy---" the last word was drowned out by the honking of horns behind him. 

"Mom, I'll be fine. Don't be vexed by me; it's only a week. Therefore I'll call you every night and you'll e-mail me every morning." The young Izumi smiled reassuringly. His parents looked at each other and then at their son.

"But, Koushiro-"

"Ah-ah--Don't worry."

"But son,"

"I'll be fine."

"Koushiro…"

"I love you, Mama." Koushiro said with a hug and a wave. 

"I love you--" before she could get the "too" out, her son already shut the door and walked down the hallway.

"Honey, he'll be just fine. He's with Hikari and Tai-- at least he'll be with someone responsible like Hikari." Mr. Izumi laughed uneasily.

Koushiro vaulted down the steps of his apartment building with his bag on his shoulders and laptop in hand. He turned every corner sharply and deftly and skipped every three steps. With all that weight on his shoulders, he was lucky he didn't fall. As soon as he reached the last ten steps, he saw the group just getting through the doors. To get down more quickly, he slid down on the railing--highly unlike him. The boy landed with a near silent thud and walked casually up to his friends.

"Hi," he greeted simply. Yamato and Taichi looked at each other for a moment.

"Hey uh, Koushiro…" Taichi started with a sly and almost evil smirk crossing his face.

The smirk contagiously spread onto Yamato's face as he finished the sentence, "Ever think about skate boarding?"

Inside of the kitchen, Hikari was fixing breakfast feverishly while she heard her brother teaching Koushiro the basics. Being the fast learner he was, Koushiro learned within a matter of an hour or so. Opening the door with a simple twist of the wrist, Yamato stood with his left hand in his pocket. Behind him were Takeru and Daisuke.

"Ready to skate?" the older blond asked.

"Actually," Taichi looked at his sister in the kitchen, "we were going to have breakfast. Care to join?"

"T… Taichi!!!" Hikari wailed in the kitchen and chucked a raw piece of bacon at her sibling. 

"I'll help you, Kari!" Takeru blurted after Yamato nudged him in the gut. He scurried into the kitchen and slid on the towel that was used for hand-washing the floor. Falling hard on his back, Takeru let out a groan while the others couldn't help but chortle. Before long, Hikari helped him to his feet and the breakfast preparation was undergo. 

After a well medium-burnt breakfast, the group of young teenagers literally jumped into the mini-van and awaited the skating park. Koushiro was typing away on his newly updated pineapple laptop, not minding the pointless bickering between Takeru and Daisuke.

"I'm telling you," Takeru glared, "I'll be the first to get to the cool tricks."

"Are not." Daisuke snapped, "You can barely stand on the board!"

"Stop talking about yourself!"

"Stop talking about yourself," the brunette mimicked in a high-pitched voice.

"You know what _I _think?" Hikari interrupted them both.

"What?" they both smiled, hoping for the best.

"I think that Koushiro'll reach perfection before both of you," teased she.

Takeru and Daisuke's jaws dropped and the computer whiz blushed. "What do you mean?" they asked in concurrence.

"Just a guess," she shrugged as the van pulled to a stop. Piling out, Koushiro took his first long glance at the park in front of him. Rails, tunnels, jumps, twists, turns… Everything seemed like a maze inside of a computer chip. Of course he always relates things to his computer. Since he didn't have a skateboard of his own, Taichi volunteered to give his up for a couple days until he can get his own. Hikari, having to be dragged along to watch, brought her roller blades to practice her routine.

"Has he even been on a board?" Yamato asked Taichi.

"Not really," he answered, "just inside my apartment."

"If I fall," Koushiro said, dropping the loose helmet on his head, "I'll fall like a man."

"Takeru, Daisuke, maybe you can learn a thing or two," Hikari punched the Takaishi's arm gently.

And so the training began. Curious Koushiro followed the movements of Yamato and the commands by Taichi. Unfortunately, Takeru and Daisuke still had to move a bit quicker, but needless to say, they were improving. Hikari twirled around on her blades, excluding her jumps and sharp circles. Every so often, her performance would be watched by others but easily taken away with Yamato and his simple but amazing tricks. By the time lunch dawned upon the skaters made their way to the teenage hangout seven blocks away.

"So when's your ice skating performance?" Koushiro asked, sitting down next to the window. 

Hikari sat down across from him and folded her arms on the table. "It's in about three weeks."

"Really? Are you ready?" 

"No," she blushed heavily, "the partner that I was assigned to had to go away for the summer and so I don't know whom I'm going to be paired up with."

"That's cataclysmic." Said he sympathetically, "I'm sorry."

"No need to apologize," Hikari assured him, "I'm sure that everything will be okay."

"I wish I could help."

"If you could ice skate, I'd be forever in your debt."

"If I even tried to ice skate, I'd break my back."

Hikari giggled and broke off a piece of a french-fry, "Why do you say that?"

"With the lack of aptitude and the jumps and twirls of ice skating…" Koushiro shook his head and sipped his drink.

"Aptitude? Cataclysmic?" Daisuke said plainly and sat down beside Hikari, "too much smartness for my blood."

"Maybe you should try it though," Hikari invited innocently.

"Ha, I don't think I would ever be able to be as agile as you." Koushiro mumbled.

"Let's stay off the ice skates and stick to the board," Taichi said, plotting himself down beside the redhead. Two trays of food were set on the table and all at once, they reached for their main course. 

"I agree."

Hikari sighed and bit into her hamburger. "I wonder how good of an ice skater he really is…" she thought, "or could be."

"One! Two! Three!" Mimi yelled at the top of her lungs, "Come on Hikari! Move with your partner! Not without."

"He's going to fast!" Hikari whined.

"You're slowing down. Come on! One! Two! One! Two!" Mimi clapped her hands harshly. She then flicked off the radio and skated onto the ice. 

"I'm sorry," Hikari sighed.

Mimi placed herself in front of Hikari and instructed, "Koushiro isn't the one that's going fast. I know you're tired, but try to keep up. Remember, you step twice, then spin under his arm. Got it?"

"How'd I ever get mixed up in this?" Koushiro hung his head.

The truth is, is that Hikari had convinced the boy to try to skate two days after their little discussion. A week later, he had already caught onto the performance and won his way to skate with Hikari. He still didn't know how she convinced him to even try on a pair of ice skates.

"It must've been those pleading eyes," he thought to himself, "she can tell me to die and I'd obey if she looked at me with those eyes."

"Koushiro?" Hikari waved her hand in front of his face.

"Wha'?" he escaped from his thoughts and focused on his friend. "I'm sorry, Hikari."

"No big deal," she shrugged and took his hand in hers. "Let's practice the beginning sequence."

"Hey, you guys can practice as long as you'd like," Mimi said, off the rink, "but I have to get out of here for that karaoke gig."

"Hey! Good luck." Hikari waved.

"Yeah, go and wow them," Koushiro nodded.

"Sure thing, see ya!" Mimi winked. "By the way, Hikari… spin at the end, don't twirl."

"Of course, Coach," she replied with a giggle. "Turn the music on before you go."

Koushiro waited for the four empty beats and started to skate along with his partner. His mind was fully concentrated on his skating that he didn't realize that Hikari was rather close to himself. Sliding on the ice in near perfect harmony, they turned and swerved and swirled and jumped… It was a perfect skating match.

"Ending arrangement," Hikari whispered.

"Are you ready?" he whispered back.

"Of course."

With a snap of his wrist, Koushiro sent Hikari turning rapidly until she was a well distance away. A wink was shared between them and the thin girl went dashing towards the youthful boy. Just as the climax of the ending part of the song leapt into the rink, Hikari jumped into the air and swiftly and gently landed in the firm hands of Koushiro. His arms lowered and he swept her into an embrace and dead silence took over the place of music. 

"I think we did good," Koushiro complimented breathlessly.

"Me too." Hikari glanced up into the eyes of her partner and saw something she had never seen before. "Is something wrong?"

"What do you mean?" he asked with his eyes linked on hers.

She blinked only once and answered, "Your eyes are…"

He turned away and blushed, "What about them?"

"They're full of um…" Hikari looked for the word. "Love?"

Koushiro turned to look at her again. "What?"

A speechless moment split between the conversation and Koushiro tightened the embrace just a little. Their eyes started to close as their lips drew closer to each other's. But Takeru's pain-filled voice broke the moment before anything could happen.

"Kari?" the blonde's voice echoed heartlessly in the chilly rink.

"Takeru!" Hikari broke away from the hold and turned to look at the newcomer. "It's not what you--"

Her sentence trailed off when he ran through the doors and down the hallways. Hikari immediately followed after pulling off her ice skates. Before she could catch him, he slammed the door of his brother's van. She watched him as he told his brother to just leave without any questions. 

"Now what have I done?" her query echoed throughout her mind.

Inside of her bedroom, Hikari dialed a familiar phone number on her teal blue telephone and waited for the rings. 

"Hello?" Takeru's voice answered.

"Hi! TK? I--" the dial tone broke her words and she tried it again.

"Takeru! Please listen to me."

"What's there to know? I mean, you've only dropped hints toward liking me for oh, five years now? No big deal," Takeru said, almost too calmly, "I understand how you work now. Will you give him another four, five years until you move onto someone else?"

"TK! It's not like that."

"Then how is it?"

"I-- Well…"

"I thought so. G'bye, Kari. Have a nice skating show." His words struck pain into her heart and then the death-filled dial tone came over again. When she tried to call him again, the operator informed her that the phone had been disconnected. Hikari tried everything to get a hold of him; his cellular phone, his mother's line, his mother's cellular phone, even Yamato's telephone! No matter how hard she tried, Takeru avoided her in every way. 

Several days later, Hikari's performance was just three days away and the friendship between she and Takeru was demolished. Over what? …Infatuation. If that was the right thing to call it. Hikari was so sure that she had loved Takeru, but ever since that little incident occurred, her mind has been filled with Koushiro. Maybe she was infatuated with Koushiro! Yes! That must've been it. She couldn't forget about the sweet blond who was always there for her when she needed him most. But then why did she feel so strongly about the computer whiz? 

"Hikari!" Taichi hollered and she dashed out of her room. Daisuke was standing beside Takeru and Yamato. 

"Going with us to watch us skate?" Daisuke asked. She watched Takeru clench his hands in his pockets.

"N-no," she said quietly and pushed her way through the group of guys. She practically fell down the steps of the stairways and ran into the walls ahead of her. Much to her surprise, her eyes were filled with large, heavy tears and she couldn't fully understand. The only thing that came across her mind was to escape from her ex-friend. 

"Mom, I'm going to go to the skating park," Koushiro said to his mother and pulled a backpack onto his shoulders. His skateboard and helmet were held tightly in his hands and he waited for a reply.

"Just be careful, okay?" was her answer.

"Aren't I always?" he smirked and exited the apartment. As he made his way down the stairs, he bumped into a girl coming up the opposite way with her face in her hands. "Whoa," he chuckled only a little, "is there an emergency?"

Hikari removed her hands from her face and his smile did a one-eighty and he immediately took the girl off the steps. He sat her against the wall and kneeled down beside her.

"What's wrong?" he asked, full of worry and concern.

She tried to speak, but all that came out was tears. Eventually, she told him about the confusion in her heart, the pain, the suffering, and the infatuation. Amazingly, he took in everything she said and returned it with words of wisdom and reassurance. 

"Hikari, if I caused that much trouble, why didn't you just say so the first day?"

"I didn't know what it was, I swear. I thought at first it could have been infatuation or just plain stupidity. I mean, stupidity for-for thinking such things. But then I realized that I think I do love you, Koushiro." Hikari said in one breath. 

Koushiro stood up and blinked several times. "Look, I-I… I comprehend what you're attempting to tell me. And forthrightly, I do wish you could love me. But Hikari, if you felt so strongly about Takeru, then…"

"But Koushiro! That's just it, I _felt_ strongly. I don't _feel_ that way any longer." Hikari gripped his hand with both of her and looked up at him.

He, being as confused as she was, glanced at his watch and pulled away. "I'm sorry for being rude, but I have to go."

Hikari nodded even though she didn't want him to leave. Just as his footsteps faded into silence, they came back and he dashed up the stairs.

"Hikari, I can't delude anyone," he dropped his items and fell on his knees beside the girl, "I do feel about you the same way you do towards me. But this thing with Takeru, maybe you're just aroused by me because I just all of a sudden jumped into your life. All I want to say is that…"

Hikari stared at the same loving eyes that she saw in the ice rink.

"I…"

"Koushiro, is that you?" Taichi's voice called from the bottom of the stairs. He and Takeru walked up the steps and looked at the scene.

"What happened?" they both said at once.

"She had a nervous b-breakdown and I attempted to help her." Koushiro stood up and switched his glance from Takeru to Taichi, not sure which one he should be fearing more of. 

"Hikari, are you okay?" Takeru questioned and pulled her to her feet. A small discussion was shared between them in whispers and Koushiro saw a small smile cross Hikari's face.

"You do forgive me?" Koushiro heard Hikari say. Somehow, he figured that what he could've had was now out of reach.

Taichi's hand fell on his shoulder and the brunette said, "Let's go, we have some practicing to do."

With the last remaining week and two days, Koushiro was under pressure. He was demanded to do the tricks on the ramps, so he did them. Gain speed before grinding, he did so. Turn more quickly around the corners, he obeyed. But the smile he used to bear when doing such a different activity was demolished with pain. Thinking that everything was the way it was supposed to be, Koushiro skated without a cause anymore. Before, he skated because Hikari was there, cheering him on and encouraging him to continue. Now that she had found her heart's path, she wasn't clapping for him anymore. Takeru had stolen his only reason to smile. 

With only three days left before the ice skating performance, Koushiro had doubled the workload and doubled the pressure. If he messed up in the performance, he'd make Hikari look bad. He didn't want that. However, messing up in the skating contest, he'd make Taichi and Yamato look bad. Koushiro didn't know what to do in any event any longer. 

His mind went elsewhere and ditched the fact that he was skateboarding, Takeru must have not seen him coming either because the next thing each of them knew, they collided and were on the ground.

"Takeru!" Hikari bladed to his side. "Are you okay?"

Koushiro sat up and rubbed his head underneath his helmet. Without saying anything, he stood up and retrieved his board. He then walked a few steps before dropping the skateboard.

"Hey Taichi?" he called and turned around.

The big-haired friend looked at him, "Yeah?"

"I don't think skateboarding is right for me." He said plainly and walked away.

"Koushiro," Yamato called after him, "don't give up. You've got skill."

The redhead turned around and shook his head. "I never had such a thing."

Hikari dialed a phone number and with two rings, Koushiro picked up. "Hi," she greeted quietly.

"Hello," said he solidly.

"Did you hear about the skating thing?" 

"Canceled till two days after the boarding tournament. I know."

"Okay."

There was an awkward beat of silence.

"Koushiro?"

"Still here."

"Are you mad at me?"

Nearly thirty seconds passed by until he answered, "Of course not. Why would I be?"

"Well, for a lot of--"

"I apologize, but my mom needs me to get off the phone. Sorry." 

That loathsome dial tone repeated over and over in her mind. At the same time, Koushiro stared at his laptop screen with his e-mail window open. With a few clicks, the message was deleted as well as Hikari's address.

"Forgive and forget," he muttered and turned off his computer, "don't look back into what could have been."

The day before the boarding contest, Koushiro and Hikari practiced all day at the ice rink for their own competition. Mimi trained them hard and fast to add a new step into their performance and they learned equally fast. By the end of the afternoon, their act was in reach for perfection.

"Hey, good job," Mimi said, biting into an apple. Hikari reached for a snack but Mimi stopped her. "Eat veggies or fruits only. Too much sugar before a performance will give you the heebie-jeebies."

"Fine," she sighed and dropped her hands onto her lap. She looked at Koushiro who was sitting at the end of the bench, typing away on his laptop. 

"Did you guys get fitted for your costumes?" 

"Yes," the younger teenagers said in a sigh. 

Mimi blinked, "Guys, what's wrong? You were like, close a week or so ago. Now you're not even speaking to each other."

"Long story," they said simultaneously.

"Well," she sat down in between them, "let me help work it out."

"There's nothing to work out." Koushiro told her.

"Really?" Hikari questioned.

"Yes, really. Everything is fine, you're with Takeru; you're a happy couple; you're a picture perfect pair. Nothing to work out there, you're happy. That's all that counts."

Mimi dropped her apple, "Oh-my-gosh! Is there a crush between you and Hikari, Koushiro? Hikari, you and Takeru are going together? Koushiro, you're jealous of Takeru? Hikari, you played both for fools?"

"I am not!" Koushiro blurted.

"I did not!" Hikari wailed.

"Okay then," the older girl smirked secretively, "tell me."

"Well first of all, Taichi had to pick Koushiro up and then he told him to start skating. Then I told him about my ice skating thing and then I convinced him into skating with me and then I sort of kind of started to like him. And when he stared at me with his eyes, the next thing I knew, he was close and Takeru was in pain. Then I realized that I liked Takeru but then I thought that I love Koushiro. So then Koushiro told me that it's all infatuation between him and I and that I like Takeru more. But the thing is, as much as I wish I didn't, I still believe I love that computer geek." Hikari said quickly.

At the same time, Koushiro was telling his side of the story; "First, I just went to stay a week with Taichi because my parents had a vacation planned. He assumed that I should start skateboarding, as impossible as that may seem, but I did. Then I realized how much Hikari was kind and a crush had developed. Then one day, Hikari comes running up and I literally run into her; I find out that she's crying. I ask why; she answers by saying that she's confused with who she likes. I told her that it must be pure lust for me and true love for her. I didn't realize that I'd be losing my beloved angel." 

"Computer geek?" Koushiro exclaimed.

"Beloved… angel?" Hikari blushed.

"Hmm, seems to me as if somebody's got a major crush."

"You're not helping, Mimi," they said together and stood up.

Koushiro pulled his backpack onto his shoulders and started to walk away, "I'm going now."

"Me too," Hikari muttered and walked away.

"Ugh, you guys…" Mimi whined.

"Come on, Koushiro," Hikari heard Taichi plead over the phone. "You'll be just fine even though you didn't practice the past few days."

Hikari tapped her pencil against the counter and glared at her brother. "If he doesn't want to, don't force him," she thought to herself. "You have Daisuke and Takeru, plus yourself and Yamato."

"Please, Koushiro? I'll do anything. I'll give you a new skateboard, a new computer mouse, a million yen, seventeen girls, my soul! Come on!" Taichi threw himself over the couch and landed on the cushions. 

The young Yagami bit into her apple sourly and kept her eye on her brother. Soon after his last plead, he finally jumped up with a "You will?!" remark. Hikari sat straight and watched the anticipation on his face when he hung up.

"Yes," he yelled and did a victory dance, "we've got a winner."

"What's wrong with Takeru?" she asked.

"Nothing. He's just not as experienced as Koushiro…"

"He's been skating more than he has."

"Koushiro's got the skills. Takeru's getting there."

"So you don't have any faith in TK?"

"I didn't say that."

"But you implied it!"

"I did not!"

"You did to!"

"Why does it matter to you anyway?" Taichi snapped.

Hikari broke her pencil between her clenched fists and threw down her apple. "I just can't believe you don't think Takeru can be just as great as that computer geek!"

Taichi blinked. "Whoa, Sis, did you two get in a fight or something?"

"What utter stupidity," she tilted her head to the ceiling and walked into her bedroom, "I've never heard such a pointless accusation like that."

"Whatever…" Taichi blinked again.

"Takeru, you're going to be okay," Yamato assured his little brother.

The Takaishi folded his arms over his chest, "Yeah, well, if Koushiro goes, I'll be in deep trouble."

"Why?"

"Because Hikari's going to realize how good he is and how bad I am."

"You're not bad."

"Yes I am."

Yamato hung his head, "You've got to put the fact that Hikari had a crush behind you. She's with you now isn't she?"

"Well…"

"Y'see? Everything's just fine."

"But what if I mess up and then she'll leave me for him?" Takeru whined. "Then I won't be with her anymore and then all that I thought would happened would happen!"

"Whatever…" Yamato blinked.

When at the competition, Hikari ceased her chatter with both Takeru and Koushiro. The only time she spoke was to cheer on her brother, Yamato, Daisuke, or other impressive boarders. Every time Takeru tried to speak with her, she gave him a puppy-eyed look and he'd quickly stop his words. Koushiro didn't even dare to talk, considering he wasn't sure what to say or what not to say. 

As the day went on, the competitors dropped like flies and the heat only got hotter. Koushiro's performance was weakening but was still acceptable. Takeru, on the other hand, was becoming more intense and into the sport. Daisuke kept a steady show with only one foul up in his second run. Taichi and Yamato were far ahead of the others in their tricks, but they had weakened extremely from their beginning run.

Near the end of the show, Hikari finally gave in and pulled Koushiro aside to speak with him.

"Need something?" he asked above all the cheering. He, Takeru, and Daisuke had gotten out on the second to last run. Yamato and Taichi were up against three others who looked very skilled.

"Koushiro, I want to apologize." Hikari whispered.

"For what?" he asked again, his eyes watching the other performers.

The girl shifted her weight from foot to foot. "Well um, I didn't mean to make you upset that one day."

"What? Oh that, well, I deserve such things--"

"No you don't, Koushiro."

"I don't get you, Yagami Hikari," said he while looking at her.

"Huh?"

"You… you play me like a puppet and lure me in with your seductress acts only to tear what little hope I have to place it on the hands of Takeru. And then you despise my very soul and make me believe that even our friendship is terminated. And now…! You're apologizing. I don't get you at all."

"Well that makes two confused teenagers."

"What?"

"It's not all me, me, me, Koushiro."

The computer whiz took a double take on her face and realized tears had come to her eyes. "Not again," he mused, "I can't stand to see her cry."

"You see," she started, staring at her feet, "I thought that it _was_ infatuation with you and everything. But the more I think about it, the more I start to wonder if Takeru's the one I'm infatuated with."

"But, Kari,"

"You see, with him, I feel like we're kids again, like we're eleven years old again, all ready to go and get candy off the street corner from the stand." She smiled dreamily and looked up towards the cloudless sky, "But with you, it seems so different. Like we could go somewhere and be lost without any worries. That's what I wish for, what I yearn for. I didn't mean to lead you away."

Koushiro set his board under his arm and pushed his hands into his pockets. "Well you did, Hikari."

"But Koushiro-"

"I understand that you're Takeru's sweetheart; don't rub it in anymore than it has been rubbed in."

"But Koushiro, I love you."

The boy looked at Hikari and waited for her pleading eyes to start shining and she to start laughing. But she didn't. She hadn't started to giggle, not even turn her lips into a smile. Koushiro didn't know what to do any longer. So the only thing he did… was walk away. Hikari stood alone, confused, embarrassed, and scared. The people around her threw their hands up and yelled out Yamato's name, claiming him the winner. But Hikari didn't cheer, silence drowned out the yelling and sounds around her. Loneliness. 

"Okay," Mimi sat down in front of Hikari. "It's show time. Are you two ready?"

Hikari smiled brightly, "Ready as ever."

"Of course I am." Koushiro sat down behind Hikari in his black pants and white shirt ensemble. 

"Remember: Keep calm, smile wide, and stay in step." Mimi giggled.

Hikari and Koushiro exchanged looks at each other. "We'll get it right," they said assertively.

As their performance started, Hikari heard a few familiar cheers.

"C'mon, Sis!" Taichi yelled.

"Go and wow 'em, Hikari!" Yamato echoed after.

"You look great!" Takeru added.

"Go, Hikari!" Daisuke exclaimed.

She even heard a comment from her mother as she swooped under Koushiro's legs and was pulled up: "That's MY little girl!?"

Koushiro's parents were right along side of his friends, astonished but proud. Their skating movements were in step; their jumps and twirls were perfect; the only thing missing was the spirit. 

"You're going too fast," Hikari whispered to Koushiro.

"You're going too slow," he argued quietly.

"Just like I am with making up my mind?"

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"I didn't mean to hurt you," she paused to do a quick twirl and giggled. "I'm not Takeru's 'sweetheart', Koushiro."

"Huh?" Koushiro blinked and gave her a look; "the last sequence is up."

"Ready?"

Hikari smiled and he let her twirl out of his arms. She stopped on the fourth beat and looked towards Koushiro. Mimi crossed her fingers and her arms, praying for perfection. Takeru and Yamato were staring at the performance as if it were magical. Still waiting in anticipation, Taichi pounded his fist against his leg to keep from disturbing the concentration. The parents of the two were whispering to each other about the performance, and the couple in general. Daisuke was still amazed by it all. Koushiro gave Hikari a nod and she started to dash towards him.

Just as they practiced, she jumped just as the climax of the ending reached the ears of the viewers. She landed in the strong hands of her partner and he swept her into her arms. The music faded into the cheers and claps of the audience but instead of bowing, they looked into each other's eyes for the first time since their large argument.

"Forgive me, Koushiro," whispered Hikari, her face a mere three inches from his.

"Forgiven," he whispered back and tilted his forehead against hers.

"I think I'm falling for you, Izumi Koushiro." She giggled, forgetting about the spectators.

"I've already fallen because of you, Yagami Hikari," Koushiro replied honestly.

She giggled again and murmured, "You're awfully good with words."

"Let's take our bow," he broke away from the embrace and held onto her hand. Together they bent forward and turned around to take another. Hikari squeezed his hand and caused him to look at her.

"I love you, Koushiro," she said with a smile, "I'm sorry it took so long to realize it."

Koushiro blushed a little and skated to the benches, pulling Hikari along with him. The announcers started to list the scores but they didn't pay attention to it.

"Hikari?" he blinked, lacing his fingers with hers. 

"Mm-hmm?" 

"I, I mean, I…" he stumbled upon the words and hung his head.

Hikari said, "Come on now, spit it out."

"I--" he shook his head and tried to force the words out. By the time the next performers started, he had given up on words. And by the time Hikari started to worry, he had already set his lips on hers with his left hand cupping her narrow neck. It didn't take long until she brought her lips into the kiss and almost melted in his touch.

"What a-a-a-… great first kiss," she said instantly after it was broken.

Koushiro turned bright red and leaned against the wall, "You're awful with words, Hikari."

"Shut up…" she turned away with her head in her hands. "Nobody can be like you."

"I know," he teased. Hikari returned the smart-aleck remark by poking him in the arm. "Why, Kari?"

"Why what?"

"Why me? Not Takeru?"

"I told you…" she looked down, "I look at him as a-a friend type now. He understands, I guess; he came to watch the performance."

"Then why do you love me?"

"Why not?"

"Many reasons."

"Like?"  


"I'm me."

Hikari looked up at him and told him, "And that's why I love you."

She gripped her companion's hand and smiled lightly. When he looked back, he saw those same pleading eyes that he had always seen before. And at that moment, he knew he had found his lover.

"Great job, Hikari! GREAT job!" Taichi lifted his sister up and hugged her proudly. 

She squeaked and hugged back with a wide smile, "Thank you so much!"

Yamato nodded to Koushiro, "Never thought I'd see one of my students an ice skater."

"Sorry, Mr. I-won-the-skateboarding-trophy," he remarked sarcastically. 

The blond shrugged helplessly and blew on his knuckles. "Hey, when you've got it, you've got it," he said, rubbing his hand against his shirt.

"You looked great out there," Takeru grinned.

"Thanks for coming," she said politely.

Koushiro caught a glance of Takeru and then they looked at each other completely. Takeru held out his hand and voiced, "You did okay too."

The redhead shook the hand and replied, "Thanks, Takeru."

Daisuke came into the hallway with a bag of popcorn. "You guys! The winners are doing an encore presentation. You've gotta see this!" 

"Oh! Gee, thanks, Dai'." Hikari caustically rolled her eyes. 

"I didn't mean-"

"Sure you didn't." Koushiro interrupted and took Hikari's hand in his.

"I'm serious! I didn't mean-"

"Whatever…" Taichi and Yamato shook their heads and left after the newly found couple exited. 

"I really didn't mean to insult--"

"Give it up," Takeru chuckled and followed his brother. 

"Bu-I-di-… I didn't mean it like that." He said to himself and ran after the group.

In conclusion of the story, (that was feebly written) Hikari and Koushiro found each other; Takeru and Daisuke learned how to skateboard; Taichi didn't do much other than be there for humor; Mimi was there 'cause hey, she coached; and Yamato was there because… he… won… the skateboarding event? Very different, yes. Very stupid, yes. But did it work out? …I guess.

The End

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~ * ~ * ~ * ~ !!! ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ !!! ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ !!! ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

Contest Stuffs 

~ Tearjerker Stories ~ 

--It has to have one positive couple. What I mean is two people have to have either a friendship or a relationship. 

--Other people could be in it too... But it has to involve a certain character's feelings towards another.

--Yaoi/Yuri is allowed. 

--Well, of course straight couples are too. 

--Nothing NC17... 'cause I'm not that old and I don't like to read that stuff. R stories are okay as long as they have an actual plot. O.o 

--I dunno... I just felt like adding another one on. 

~ Humor Stories ~ 

--It has to be gut-grasping, falling off the chair, laugh your head off, and pass out from lack of air kind of funny. 

--It still has to be below NC17 though... 

--Hey, it's a humor... You can do almost anything. 

--Um... 

--Oh yeah, if you bash a character, be calm about it. Calm...yes, calm... 

~ Other stuff...~ 

--The due date is... March 1st. Too soon? Talk to me about it. 

--The tearjerkers will be judged differently from the humors. 

--I need um... judges... Possibly two-three others. 

--Whoa, I'm totally weird... A tearjerker/humor contest. ^-^ Strange combination. 

--Anyone who can put humor into a tearjerker... You go! O.o; ::sweatdrops:: 

I've only got one judge… ~.~ So… please enter/volunteer to be a judge/review my story/flame my story. I understand if you flame it. I just had to get up a story somehow… I'm sorry for the lameness. ~.~;; Hika'Kaishi


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